An ancestor having the last laugh...

[Geordie daughter]

It's the reason why doing family tree research is a bit like peeling back the layers of an onion - you have to keep going until you get to the true facts, and goodness knows, anyone of us who's been doing this for a while gets pretty good at "peeling"!

[pinefamily]

And you get the tears when you A: you don't find anything, and B: it's the wrong family. 

[healyjfch]

On a Baptismal record, the parents were recorded as father James Haly and WIFE
1830's. Gowran Co Kilkenny.
It's great that the same couple stayed in same area.
The mother was recorded properly in later baptisms.
In that era mothers rarely attended baptisms of their children.

[coombs]

I know the feeling when you think you have found an ancestor and then find a very inconvenient burial for them as a child, or a marriage in the area to another person.

I think my Elizabeth Scudder came from Kent originally, born in 1743 in Sutton At Hone. My one wed in Benfleet, Essex in 1763. A John Scudder and Edward Scudder lived in Benfleet at the same time, also John died in 1806 aged 62 at age of death. The Elizabeth Scudder born in Kent in 1743 had a brother John born 1741 and Edward born 1753. She also had a brother William and Richard. John Scudder in Benfleet had children called William, Edward and Richard. William may have stayed in Kent, as a William Scudder wed in Southfleet and had children called Richard and Edward.

An Elizabeth Scudder wed in Southfleet in Kent in 1763, she was of Fawkham so a distance away from Southfleet and an Eliz Scudder was baptised in 1735, daughter of Thos and Rebecca, in Ash by Wrotham, next to Fawkham. But I found a 1757 burial of an Eliz Scudder, no age given. I hope it is not the one born 1735, who is the likeliest candidate for the 1763 marriage. See how confusing it can be, trying to sort out the right people, esp if no age is given at burial, which was more often than not before 1813.

[Geordie daughter]

You've pretty much hit the nail on the head, Pinefamily! Much grinding of teeth and gentle swearing follow.

Coombs, I've had a fair few of those as well, so I can sympathise. Occasionally, there's a burial where the minister has generously added "son/daughter of" or "wife/husband of" but not often enough, unfortunately....I'm still looking for the right death for my James Newton between 1841 and 1851. As there are several possible places he could have died in London, it's no easy task, especially as the age isn't shown on the early GRO index entries. Your Scudders also appear to have tendency to use a limited selection of Christian names like my Newtons, by the looks of it. Throw in cousins with the same first names, born around the same time in the same area, and you have complete and utter confusion!!

[coombs]

I am sure the 1743 Elizabeth Scudder is mine. It is just finding that final piece of proof. It looks good, with the names of her siblings. Yes, it does get frustrating to find endless ancestors called John, James, Thomas or William marrying Elizabeth's, Ann's and Mary's. Even then you could come across more than one occurrence of the same surname in your line such as Smith's. I have about 5 direct ancestors called Smith after 1700. Even less common names like Hurrell I have found a few lines in Essex.

[Geordie daughter]

The proof will come when you least expect it, Coombs, if my tree is anything to go by. I've been hunting for the whereabouts of my Suffolk-born 3x great grandmother, Priscilla Miller Manning's, parents in the 1851 census for years now, and had pretty much given up on finding them; while idly searching for her mother's brother, George Ixer's, descendants last week, I found Priscilla's widowed father sharing lodgings with the family of one of George's married daughters, not in Suffolk, but in Clerkenwell! It solved another mystery too - how my 3x great grandfather had come to meet Priscilla in the first place, as he was from Clerkenwell. Previously, I could never figure out why he'd upped sticks all of a sudden and gone to Ipswich, when he was London born-and-bred. He must have followed Priscilla back to her home town, as they married in Ipswich the year after the census.

I'm eternally grateful that at least I haven't had Smiths, Browns or Joneses to contend with...yet!

[coombs]

Also I feel that if you went back further, the more diverse your tree becomes. It does get harder the further you go back as well all know unless you descend from royalty or those who keep a age old family bible.

[coombs]

Almost a year since this thread was posted on but saves starting a new one as I feel my Norfolk branch is having the last laugh, or trying to have the last laugh.

Again I may have been researching the wrong Elizabeth Harbord, but one consolation is, they may be first cousins. In 1752 my Eliz Harbord wed Dennis Helsdon at St Peter Parmentergate, Norwich. An Eliz Harbord was baptised half a km away at St Simon & St Jude, Norwich. Daughter of Robert & Rebecca Harbord. After my Elizabeth wed Dennis Helsdon they had children called Robert and Rebecca Helsdon. You think case closed. Eliz died in 1828 aged 97 (born c1731).

But Dennis Helsdon had a brother who named his children Robert and Rebecca Helsdon. And Robert may have been Dennis' grandfather. And then I found in 1756 an Eliz Harbord wed at St Simon & St Jude, Norwich to William Davey. Witnesses names dont ring any bells. Same church to the one baptised in 1733 to Rob and Rebecca. Rob and Rebecca had a daughter Eliz in 1731 but she died in infancy.

Robert and Rebecca Harbord had other children and it seems they connect to a Joseph Harbord born c1728 as a Jos Harbord witnessed the marriage of children born to Rob and Rebecca. A Joseph Harbord died in 1758 in Norwich aged 57 (so born c1701). A Joseph Harbord wed Eliz Brereton in Wymondham, Norfolk in 1725. They had a son William baptised in 1726 in Wymondham. A daughter Rachel was born in Norwich in 1728 to Joseph and Elizabeth.

No other marriage of a Joseph Harbord to an Elizabeth has been found so very likely the same couple. Their next child Benjamin Harbord seems to be baptised in 1739. So there seems to be a 10 year gap where they probably had more children, but not baptised them or did so at a non conformist chapel. A Benjamin Harbord died in 1738 aged 4, son of Jos and Eliz in Norwich. So born c1734. No baptism has been found. So it seems they had children inbetween 1728 and 1739.

In 1766 a Sarah Harbord married a Thomas Dewing at St Peter Parmentergate, Norwich. One of the witnesses was Dennis Helsdon, who wed Eliz Harbord. Sarah died in 1817 aged 88. So born c1729. Sarah must be a relative of Elizabeth.

I am now wondering if the Eliz Harbord who wed Dennis Helsdon is the daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth rather than Robert and Rebecca. Joseph and Robert may have been brothers.

In 1775 a Joseph Harbord died and left an administration bond. His burial says 47 so born c1728.